Castle Couch is a criticism and opinion focused videogame website formed in 2013. Our goal is to poke, prod, caress, and otherwise stir conversation about videogames through essays, critiques, and other multimedia adventures. Games have merit, we are deeply interested in the ones that intrigue, inspire, or entertain.

Lifeline opens with you receiving a plea for help from a crash-landed astronaut named Taylor.

It’s important to note that Lifeline is a phone game because the story unravels in real-time as Taylor periodically sends you messages asking for survival advice. These exchanges have the pace and —more importantly— feeling of a text message conversation, and they create a sense of urgency for the character. It also helps that Taylor is funny, extremely likeable, and that the game never stoops to obnoxious text-tropes like abbreviations and typos to convey its tone.

Structurally, Lifeline isn’t any different from a choose your own adventure novel. The game, however, completely side-steps the negative stigma associated with this kind of narrative by using the medium of smart devices to frame the context and content of the story. It’s well-done and innovative — Marshall McLuhan would be proud.

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Essays and Conversations about Games

Castle Couch is a Montreal-based criticism and opinion focused videogame website formed in 2013. Our goal is to poke, prod, caress, and otherwise stir conversation about videogames. Games have merit, we are deeply interested in the ones that intrigue, inspire, or entertain.